Grand Challenges Canada, funded by the Government of Canada, has launched a funding opportunity open to applicants in low- and middle-income countries and Canada: Stars in Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (RMNCH).

Stars in Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health seeks bold ideas for products, services and implementation models that could transform how persistent challenges in reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health are addressed in low- and middle-income countries. Successful proposals will be awarded seed grants of up to $100,000 CAD over a maximum of 12 to 18 months.

Of particular interest to Grand Challenges Canada are innovations to improve reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health in humanitarian contexts, notably among internally displaced and refugee populations, as well as innovations that improve the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls, so that they are empowered and have greater influence over their lives and futures.

Please note that in addition to the listed requirements, a preliminary network Letter of Intent (LOI) is due August 11, 2017. If you are interested in applying to this funding opportunity, please contact the Alberta Network Coordinator Cliff Lindeman (clindema@ualberta.ca; Ph: 780-248-2005) as soon as possible.

Summary
The Western Canadian Universities Big Data Health Conference (WCUC) is a partnership between the universities of British Columbia, Alberta, Calgary, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. The primary goal of this event, taking place on September 28-29, 2017 in Banff, AB, is to foster collaboration between the Western Canadian medical schools.

To do this, seed funding has been gathered with the intention of encouraging up to four cross-jurisdiction collaborative research projects (one project per participating sponsor University). This seed funding is designed specifically to increase the competitive edge of medicine faculty:

To pursue and submit future grant applications to tri-council or provincial funding agencies.

Create and engage multi-disciplinary teams from the collaborative partnership universities in Western Canada.

For more details regarding this seed funding, including amount/s, eligibility, submission process, and expectations of the award, click HERE.

Planning and Dissemination Grants are intended to provide support for planning and/or dissemination activities consistent with the mandate of CIHR and relevant to CIHR Institutes, or Initiatives. The specific objectives of this funding opportunity are:

to support planning activities, partnership development and/or increasing understanding of the health research landscape that will contribute to the advancement of research consistent with the mandate of CIHR; and/or;

to support dissemination events/activities that focus on the communication of health research evidence to the appropriate researcher and/or knowledge user audience(s), tailoring the message and medium as appropriate.

CIHR-Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (CIHR-IMHA)The CIHR Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (CIHR-IMHA) will provide funding for applications that are determined to be relevant to its mandate. CIHR-IMHA’s mandate is to support ethical and impactful research to enhance active living, mobility and oral health, and to address the wide range of conditions related to bones, joints, muscles, connective tissue, skin and teeth. More information on the research priorities of CIHR-IMHA can be found on their website.

$50,000 is available to fund applications relevant to CIHR-IMHA. The maximum amount awarded for a single grant is $10,000 per annum for up to one (1) year.

Global HealthThe CIHR Institutes of Population and Public Health (CIHR-IPPH) and Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (CIHR-IMHA) in collaboration with the CIHR InstiPlanning and Dissemination Grants – Institute/initiative Community Support

WCHRI is pleased to announce that the Clinical/Community Research Integration Support Program (CRISP) competition is now open. The goal of this program is to fund high impact clinical and/or community research that has the potential to improve health outcomes and/or influence clinical practice at the point of care for women and/or children.

Applications are peer-reviewed by the Clinical/Community Research Integration Support Program (CRISP) Grant Advisory Committee. Funding of up to $20,000 is available for a three-year period.

To change the paradigm of how successful innovative implementation research is rewarded, CIHR has designed the SPOR Rewarding Success Initiative that will incentivize multidisciplinary research teams and their partners to enhance value-based care, health system sustainability, and health outcomes. Teams will design, implement, and evaluate interventions in healthcare delivery organization(s) that aim to produce healthcare cost savings and/or improved health system efficiency.

The SPOR Rewarding Success Initiative is an experimental funding model that is being piloted in five provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland & Labrador. This initiative is similar to other funding models that have been developed to support innovation and impact, such as risk sharing, social impact bonds, and innovation prizes. The basic principle is that teams of patients, healthcare delivery organizations, clinicians, and researchers identify potential solutions to identified problems and priorities in health care; solutions that will enhance patient and provider experience while also:

Teams will partner with payers of health services (e.g. Ministries of Health, Regional Health Authorities, insurers, hospitals, etc.) and/or charities and philanthropic organizations who recognize the identified challenges and agree to pay for successful improvement in outcomes, efficiencies, or reduction in low value services based on actual (e.g. lower drug costs) or measured but not readily retrievable savings (e.g. reduction in hospital admissions). Teams and their payers will work together to determine the outcomes, the metrics to be measured, the value of the payback, and the mechanism of the payback. If agreed-upon outcomes are achieved, there will be redistribution of a portion of the savings by the payer, which may be returned to the multidisciplinary research team, and/or redirected into an Innovation Fund, depending upon the agreements outlined.

Programs & Events

Undergraduate Student Summer Series: Launchpad to Research

This year’s Launchpad to Research program was a great success! A total of 13 students participated in the program, 7 of which presented their research at the Launchpad to Research Poster Presentation. Below is a picture of the FoN’s 2017 Undergraduate Student Summer Research Award recipients.

This interactive two day course will provide Nurse Practitioners and Advanced Practice Nurses with up-to-date practices in wound management, focusing on the management of lower extremity ulcers and diabetic foot ulcers. The course will equip NPs and APNs with the knowledge and skill to effectively assess, diagnose and manage lower extremity wounds. Interactive simulation lab sessions will focus on physical assessment, diagnostic reasoning, selection and use of wound treatments; and advanced wound management techniques.

Health Professions Strategy and Practice (HPSP) and Research Innovation & Analytics (RIA) are collaborating to launch the second Research Challenge – an opportunity for teams of front-line nurses, allied health and other care providers to work together over 20-24 months (January 2018-Fall 2019) to learn about clinical research and conduct a small scale research study designed to answer their clinical practice question.

Successful applicants will receive education and mentorship from an experienced researcher to design and conduct a small scale research project.